Healing old Hurts
by Sione
Summary: Legolas visits Imladris and Estel is delighted when he gets to meet the prince for the first time. But one of the accompanying Mirkwood warriors does not have warm feelings for mankind, how will he react to Estel?


_Hey everybody I finally have a new story for you! I said you were going to get an Estel story so here you have it, no G__lorfindel and Erestor this time (though they are mentioned in the story, yay!). Sorry if it feels a little rushed, I needed to get this finished and it just kept growing._

_Edit: Hi again, I kind of forgot to mention that I'm very well aware of that the story line is not by any way very original. So I should warn you that this is an ordinary Estel story with no fantastic plot twist or anything. It's of course not a copy of any other stories but you have seen the concept before. So there, now I've warned you and you can decide for yourself if you still want to read it._

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Title: Healing old Hurts

Author: Sione

Disclaimer: I own nothing, everything belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien.

Notes: A big thank you to my beta reader Helen who makes sure you don't need to read my terrible English.

Summary: Legolas visits Imladris and Estel is delighted when he gets to meet the prince for the first time. But one of the accompanying Mirkwood warriors does not have warm feelings for mankind, how will he react to Estel?

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"Estel!"

"Estel, where are you?!"

Elladan and Elrohir had been searching the garden for the last ten minutes with no sign of their little brother. No reply greeted their calls this time either but when a slight movement caught Elladan's eye he stopped abruptly. He made Elrohir do the same by placing the palm of his hand on his chest. Elrohir looked at him questioning but Elladan just tilted his head in the direction of a large bush to their left. His twin rolled his eyes amused when he also saw the contour of a small boy among the leaves. A faint giggle reached their elven ears and they both smiled knowingly.

"Oh, where could he be?" Elladan exclaimed dramatically.

As they slowly approached the bush, Elrohir played along.

"I don't know Elladan, he must have gone back to the house. He doesn't seem to be out here, maybe we should return."

A louder giggle was heard this time that not even human ears could have missed.

"I guess so." Elladan replied as he placed himself beside the bush. With a grin he bent down and with elven speed snatched up a giggling brown-haired boy from his hiding place. Estel squealed in delight when he was thrown up in the air and caught again by Elladan's strong arms.

"Ro, look what I found, it almost looks like our dear little brother." He held the squirming little boy out for Elrohir to see.

"I don't know Dan; could it really be our Estel under all that dirt." He plucked a twig from the brown disarrayed hair.

"Ro, it's me!" Estel cried out indignant but still giggling.

"Estel! Is it really you under all those twigs and leaves?" Elrohir feigned a surprised look.

The little boy nodded vigorously and smiled widely.

"Then the question is what are you doing here, Estel? Didn't Adar tell you to bathe before the Mirkwood party arrive?" Elladan said sternly as he placed the boy on his hip.

Estel squirmed uncomfortably and bit his lower lip. "Yes." He looked down at his dangling bare feet which were now covered with dirt.

"You know you shouldn't run away like that."

"Sorry." He mumbled, still looking down at his feet.

Seeing the forlorn expression on his little brother's face Elrohir bent down to Estel's level and made him meet his eyes with two slender fingers under his chin.

"You don't want to be in the bath when the Mirkwood elves arrive, now do you?"

"Nooo, but must I really bathe?" He whined but his spirits lifted a little when he thought about the soon arriving Mirkwood elves.

"Yes you do." Elrohir replied firmly but with a small smile on his lips. "Now come on, tithen pen."

Elladan sat him down on the ground and held out his hand to Estel who grabbed it and leaned forward to grab Elrohir's hand with his other. He looked up at his older brothers.

"Do you think Legolas will like me?"

"I'm sure he will." Elrohir responded.

His brothers had talked about Legolas many times and Estel was very excited about his visit. He had never met a Mirkwood elf before and he had definitely never met a prince. His Ada had received message from the border guard that Legolas and his guards had entered Imladris and would soon arrive. And unfortunately his Ada apparently thought it was a good idea for Estel to bathe before that happened. He had hoped if he sneaked out after breakfast maybe everyone would forget about it. He sure had at least, he had become so caught up in his playing that all thoughts about bathing had left his mind. Though by know Estel should have known that his Ada on the other hand never forgot anything, especially not his baths.

When they arrived at the house a serious looking Lord Elrond greeted them with arms crossed.

"Weren't you supposed to bathe Estel? Aeroniel has been waiting with the water ready for you."

"Sorry Ada, I forgot about the time."

"Why does that not surprise me?" He held out his hand. "Come, we must hurry. I would like to have you ready before our guests arrive." Estel skipped up to him and grabbed his Ada's larger hand in his.

"Elladan, Elrohir you should go and change too. Thanks for helping me find him."

When the twins left to change Elrond glanced down at his youngest son. "What have you been up to ion nîn, you look like a little bush."

"I hid from Dan and Ro in one." Estel answered proudly with a big smile.

"I should have known." Elrond sighed and rubbed his forehead.

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About an hour later Estel stood freshly bathed out on the courtyard together with his family. To his annoyance he was dressed in one his finer outfits, a light blue tunic with golden embroidery and a pair of matching dark blue leggings. He wasn't pleased about it at all, the tunic felt awkward and stiff because of the detailed embroidery on its collar and sleeves. It felt impossible to move comfortably in and he was already longing for his usual loose fitting soft clothes. Though he was glad that he didn't have to dress in the formal robes like those his Ada and brothers were wearing. They looked hot and even more impractical than his clothes.

Not only was his outfit fancier than usual, his hair which normally would be a mass of unruly brown locks had been detangled and braided in elven style which got the dark tresses out of his face. Earlier when his Ada patiently had worked out his tangles with a comb and finally braided the unruly hair Estel had made sure to complain through the whole procedure. Though he had to admit it was kind of nice to get his hair out his face for once. But right now his impatience was starting to get the better of him and he eagerly tugged on his Ads robe.

"Will they be here soon?"

"Patience, Estel, I can hear them, they will be here any moment now."

He tilted his head slightly and tried to hear something but as usual his Ada and brothers always heard and saw things before him. Eventually he too heard the sounds of hooves and smiled widely. He stood on his toes to see better when a group of elves entered the courtyard shortly after. Fascinated he noted that most of them wore at least one piece of green clothing and some of them were even clad in shades of green from head to toe. Estel stared at the group of elves wide-eyed until his gaze finally fell on the blond elf in the front with shinning golden hair.

Legolas dismounted his horse wearily; glad to finally arrive in Imladris after the long journey from Mirkwood. As soon as his feet touched the ground he was tackled by two dark shadows. One hand patted his back while another ruffled his hair.

"Legolas, it's wonderful to see you again!"

"You should have visited us sooner."

Legolas grinned at the rather forceful welcoming and pushed at their hands as he tried to put some distance between him and the eager twins.

"Well, I can't recall either of you visiting me." He smirked and finally got Elladan's hand out of his now dishevelled hair.

"Elladan, Elrohir, please give Legolas some space, he has just arrived." All three turned to the smiling elf lord who patiently stood waiting by the side.

"Greetings, Lord Elrond." Legolas bowed his head.

"Greetings, Prince Legolas and welcome to Imladris. Your presence has been missed, as you can tell." He smiled knowingly. "I have rooms ready for you and your guards. Send your warrior's with Glorfindel and he will give them accommodation."

"Hannon lle, my lord."

"Must we do this every visit, Legolas? Please call me Elrond."

"As you wish." He smiled at the elf lord's slightly annoyed yet amused look.

A brown head was what caught his attention next when it popped out from behind Elrond's robes. 'A child? Well, that was a surprise' Legolas thought puzzled. He hadn't heard of a child being born in Imladris in centuries. He kneeled down in front of the boy who was tugging nervously at his tunic with one hand while the other was firmly planted somewhere in the elven lord's robes. The child quickly averted his eyes to the ground when he saw Legolas kneel in front of him.

"And who might this be?" He asked and smiled encouragingly.

When the child made no approach to reply Elrond answered. "This is Estel, my son. Estel this is Prince Legolas of Mirkwood." Elrond gave the boy a little nudge in the back when the boy still stubbornly looked down on the ground.

Estel bit his lip and looked up at him hesitantly.

"Well met, Prince Legolas." The boy stuttered and even managed a little awkward bow.

Legolas looked up at Elrond questioningly, wondering where this child came from.

"He's Edain, and my foster son. He came to us about three years ago."

Estel stared at the Prince awestricken; he was really pretty with his golden hair. He hadn't seen many elves with hair that light, most of the elves in Imladris were dark-haired like his family, Glorfindel being one of the few exceptions.

"Well met, Estel. I hope you will just call me Legolas like all my other friends." Legolas said and brought him out of his gawking. He blushed when he noticed the Prince had caught him staring and was smiling a bemused smile.

"You must be tired Legolas. Let's get you settled in your rooms, I've prepared the usual. We will have a feast later in the evening to celebrate your arrival."

Legolas turned to Estel again before he got to his feet. "I hope to see you later then tithen pen."

Estel only nodded and was a bit disappointed when he saw his brothers leading Legolas in to the house.

"Don't worry Estel there will be plenty of time for you to talk to Legolas later, he have had a long journey and needs to rest and freshen up before the feast." Elrond said when he saw the forlorn face of his son. "You will see him then, why don't you go play with you new wooden horse until then. I will come and get you later.

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After Legolas had taken a long bath and changed to new clothes he felt wonderfully refreshed so he went looking for the twins hoping to spend some time with them before the evening meal. When he finally found them in the garden they seemed to be in search for something and were looking rather comical in their fine robes. He strolled up to them.

"So what are you looking for?" He had a hard time keeping the grin out of his face at seeing Elladan in his formal wear, on his knees and with his head inside a large Rhododendron bush.

Elladan's head snapped up and he gave a low growl when seeing the grin on his friend's face. He got up from his knees with some difficult because of his wide robe. "Oh good, here comes some help for our search party."

"And what exactly are we looking for?"

Elrohir came up to them. "Our little brother has gone missing again, he should be out here somewhere, he probably forgot about the time again. Ada just wanted to make sure that he's not looking like a walking mud pile in time for the feast. Estel has a habit of getting very dirty. Especially this last month, when he has had a hide and seek period. Since he's not allowed to climb tree, bushes are usually the place to find him."

Legolas chuckled. "This should be interesting; I will help you look for him."

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Estel had wanted to spend some time with the Prince right away but his Ada had told him he had to wait until later. At first he had tried to occupy himself in his rooms but when seeing what a sunny day it turned out to be he decided to move his play out to the gardens. He had taken his wooden horse with him but with no one there to play with him it really wasn't very fun. His brothers had disappeared somewhere with Legolas and his Ada had gone to discuss something important with Erestor. He was bored and his horse now lay forgotten in the grass. He leaned his chin in one of his hands and sighed but than a bright idea suddenly struck him and he leapt to his feet.

He might not get to see Legolas yet but maybe he could go down to the barracks and get a glimpse at the Mirkwood warriors, he felt a little excited at the idea. He headed for the training fields, if nothing else maybe Glorfindel was there and wanted to play with him.

Estel's bare feet hit the lush green grass and he enjoyed the warm sun shinning down on him as he walked through the garden of Imladris. This was one of the summer's first warm days and he made sure to enjoy every minute of it. This was the only time of year that his Ada would allow him to walk bare footed which he loved.

However he didn't get very far on his way to the training fields, a low sound suddenly caught his attention. He stopped and looked around, searching for the source of the sound. He curiously knelt down in front of a bush where he thought the sound had been coming from. Estel smiled at first when he found that it was a little sparrow but frowned when something seemed to be wrong with it.

The little bird twittered and flapped its wings helplessly. Its left wings seemed to be working fine but the right wing hung useless at her side and just twitched occasionally. Estel slowly crawled closer to the injured bird, not wanting to scare it. He remembered one time not long ago when he and his brothers had found a dead bird on the ground when visiting the nearby lake. It had saddened him to see the lifeless body and he had asked his brothers why the bird had died because it seemed to be nothing wrong with it. Elrohir had pointed to one of the bird's wings and when he looked closer he noticed that it lay at an awkward angle. Elrohir said it must have been broken and that made it impossible for the bird to fly. Without the ability fly, the bird soon died because it was unable to feed itself he explained. Estel had felt heartbroken for the poor bird and dearly wished that they had found it earlier, then he could have taken it to Ada and he was sure that he would have been able to heal it. But at least now he was determined that this bird would not face the same fate, if he carried her to Ada he was sure he would be able to help her.

"Come here little birdie." He tried to call to the bird but it shied away from him. He crawled closer and just managed to capture the bird and gently enclosed it in his small hands. Not knowing that the boy meant well the bird tried to flap its wings and chirped loudly.

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Calanon walked through the gardens of Imladris enjoying the peaceful surroundings. His soul was troubled, and so it had been the last couple of years. That had been one of the reasons for him to join the small party of Mirkwood warriors that had followed their prince to the Last Homely House. He had hoped that maybe this visit would offer some tranquillity to his chaotic mind. He had chosen to quickly slip away from the formal welcoming by Elrond and his family to seek his refuge in the beautiful gardens. His prince who knew of his grief had luckily seen his urge to get away and dismissed him with a discreet nod.

It was now almost a year ago since his beloved sister sailed to the west and that distressing fact still plagued his mind. Those who were to blame for it was those damn humans. His sister could still be with him if it weren't for that filthy race. He had no trust left for them and he truly thought Arda would be better off without them. They were selfish creatures, with no compassion for living things, and more importantly they had hurt his sister. He can't say that he held very warm feelings for humans before, but after the attack of his sister the disliking turned into hate.

A group of men had managed to catch Saerwen on her riding trip by the borders of Mirkwood. Calanon had warned her many times of the danger but his sister was a free spirit and no one could stop her when she had her mind set on something, not even him. And although the men didn't get the opportunity to violate her as they had indented to do it still had left scars far too deep

He had tried to make her stay but her soul yearned for peace and after about a year after the attack she sailed to the west. He couldn't blame Saerwen for her decision, it was understandable considering the circumstances but it was a hard farewell to take. She had been all he had left of his family but now both his sister and parents dwelled in the undying land. The only thing he could be grateful for was that the Mirkwood warriors guarding the borders had heard her screams and found her in time to stop the men before they could fulfil their horrible deeds. At least seeing her sail to the west by her own choice was far better than watching her fade away. Which would surely been her fate if the men could have had their ways with her. His sister was revenged, all the men had been slain on the spot, and she had found peace in Valinor but still Calanon could find no peace within himself.

A desperate twittering suddenly reached his ears and he stopped dead in his tracks. It sounded like a bird in distress. Hurriedly he followed the sound, thinking that it maybe got stuck somewhere. When he drew closer to the sound he saw a small boy kneeling on the ground with his hands cupped around something. He was surprised at first, thinking it must be an elfling because of the typical elven clothes he was wearing. He even had his unruly hair braided in elven style to keep it away from his face. But the hairstyle also gave a free view of his ears which he now saw were not pointed but rounded. He gasped when seeing that the small boy was actually human. At first he just looked at the boy stunned but his face grew stern when he saw what it was he had captured in his hands. The bird he heard from before was held in the small hands and she flapped desperately trying to get away but the boy held it tight. The sight of the boy tormenting the bird made anger boil in him. Typical humans to have no sympathy for even a small bird, they just took what they wanted. His heated emotions for humans probably fuelled his anger more than it should have but rational thoughts left him when he marched towards the unknowingly boy.

Estel bit his lips miserably when he saw that he was only frightening the bird but he needed to get her to Ada, he didn't want her to die like the other bird had.

"Come on birdie, I will not hurt you, I'll take you to Ada and he will help you." He said in attempt to calm the bird but it didn't help.

Upon hearing someone coming up behind him he happily turned his head, hoping to see maybe his brothers or someone else who be able to help him. He frowned when he instead saw an unknown dark-haired elf clad in dark green colours marching towards. He didn't know who this elf was but he guessed he must be one of the Mirkwood elves for he was dressed in the same colours as Legolas. Maybe he could help him with the bird, Legolas was nice so this elf should be too. He smiled but when the elf came closer he frowned worriedly, his face did not look kind like Legolas. The elf looked mad, and it seemed like the anger was directed towards him. Before Estel had time to wonder why the unknown elf would be so mad at him, he was hauled to his feet by a harsh grip on his arm, which made him drop the bird to the ground. It hurt and he whimpered at the painful hold as he fearfully looked up at the elf with forming tears in his eyes. The hard grip on his arm loosened but instead sudden pain exploded in his chin when he was slapped across the face. Estel's cry was a mixture of surprise, fear and pain and the tears flowed freely from his eyes when he was steadied on his feet by a firm grasp on his hair.

"What were you doing Edain?" The elf spat out and shook him slightly.

"I'm sorry!" Estel cried out. "I was just trying to help her." He snivelled, absolutely terrified of the angered elf. His cheek ached something terrible and his hands went to his hair in attempt to make the elf loosen the hard grip on it. His eyes caught movement behind the mean elf's back and when seeing it was his brother's hastily approaching he let out a shaking sob of relief.

His focus was so intensely fixed on the boy, Calanon didn't even hear the elves approaching him from behind but a sharp blade to his throat made him well aware of someone's presence. He froze when the sharp edge was pushed deeper into his sensitive skin and a lethal voice hissed into his ear.

"If life is precious to you, I'll suggest you let him go right now."

He quickly let go of the boy's hair, wondering who his attacker was. Could another human have got into to Imladris, and why didn't he hear him? His eyes widened when one of Elrond's sons, he couldn't tell which one of them, came up from behind him and caught the boy in his arms which sobbingly clung to the elf. The blade was still pressed at his throat so he stood motionless and confused looked at the strange scene before him. Suddenly the knife was gone but he was immediately hauled backward and a hard blow landed in his face that made him stumble. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to clear his ringing head as he straightened up to meet his attacker. But before he had time to clear his head he was swiftly thrown into a tree and held there by an arm pressed against his throat. He blinked dazed a couple of times and took a sharp breath when he finally saw who had him trapped. The other son of Elrond glared down at him with a terrifying anger in his grey eyes.

"I'll give you one chance to explain yourself, why were you're hurting my brother?" When all he could do was to stare confused, the elf roared. "Speak quickly!"

Brought out of his stupor by the order Calanon stuttered confused "Your brother?" He hadn't touched any one of Elrond's sons. On the contrary, it was currently he who was attacked by one. "But that one is human, my lord" He tried to make some sense of the situation. He was violently slammed in to the tree again.

"Yes, and your point is?" The dark elf sneered.

"Elladan, please calm yourself." To his relief Calanon saw his prince enter the scene and place a hand on the furious elf's shoulder, but when only meeting cold blue eyes he lowered his gaze confused.

"Legolas." Elladan growled. "This disgusting excuse of an elf hurt my brother, I'm not going to be calm about it!"

"At least let him go, he's not going to run away, now are you Calanon?"

"No, of course not my Prince" He said humbly, feeling very awkward when he saw his prince's angered eyes directed at him.

When Legolas squeezed his shoulder Elladan reluctantly let go of Calanon and stepped back a couple of paces.

"Please, let me take care of this." Legolas quietly pleaded.

"I want him punished!" Elladan hissed.

"And he will be, now step aside and take care of your brother instead. Trust me on this." After a while the dark-haired elf nodded his agreement and joined Elrohir who was holding the still crying Estel.

"Calanon, what's the meaning of this?" Legolas said sternly.

"That human, it looked like he was hurting the bird so I…" He didn't know what to say, human or not he knew that his emotions had made him go too far and the stern gazes directed at him were making him very uncomfortable. He had never angered his prince this way before. "I didn't know he was their brother." He added helplessly.

"And that makes it alright to hurt him." Elladan growled and stepped forward but Legolas held up a hand to stop him.

"Humans have caused nothing but grief!" Calanon cried out in a desperate attempt to explain his actions.

"I know of your hate for humans after your sister's attack Calanon, but it's wrong to judge a whole race by some evil men's action. Look at him!" Legolas ordered and gestured towards the crying Estel. "He is merely an innocent child, this intolerance doesn't suit you Calanon. You have disgraced your whole realm by these actions."

Calanon felt shame invade him at his prince's words and for the first time he truly saw the crying boy who had buried his head into his brother's shoulder. He felt ill when he spotted a reddening swelling on the cheek were he had hit him. He had actually hit a child in his fury; he was mortified by the thought. He couldn't find any warm feelings for humans within him but this was after all just a child and as a warrior it was his duty to protect the innocent not to hurt them.

"I was blinded by my own sorrow and hate, I don't know what got in to me." He fell to his knees and bowed his head. "I have shamed my realm, please forgive me my prince, I'll gladly take any punishment you wish to give me."

"It's not mine to give Calanon, I'm very disappointed at you but Lord Elrond shall be the judge of you. It is a serious crime you have committed, you're a guest to this realm and have hurt one of Lord Elrond's sons, it's not to be taken lightly."

Calanon swallowed hard. He had placed himself in a very bad situation but he knew it was his own doing so he would take the punishment without complaint. Now when the adrenaline had left his body his head throbbed unpleasantly after the blow and he saw some blood drop to the ground from his nose but he ignored it.

"I know that my deeds are very grave and I will take my punishment for them."

Estel hadn't listened to too much of the conversation between his brothers, Legolas and the mean elf. He was just so happy to see his brothers; he had practically thrown himself into Elrohir's arms and cried heartbreakingly. His brother had rocked him slowly and soothingly rubbed his back as he whispered reassuring words in his ear. His cheek felt swollen and hurt but snuggled up in Elrohir's protective arms made things a lot better. He noticed that Elladan had now joined them now but Estel frowned when seeing his brother's stern expression. He had heard the angry voices and hoped that his brothers weren't angry at him too.

"Dan?" He asked hesitantly.

"Yes, tithen pen." Elladan smiled at him and ruffled his hair.

"I didn't mean to hurt her, I just wanted to help her."

"Who?" Elladan asked confused.

"The bird, she had injured her wing and I thought Ada could help her. I didn't want her to die."

"It's alright Estel, you did nothing wrong."

"But why was he so angry then."

Calanon who felt even more mortified when hearing the conversation between the boy and his brother hesitantly rose from his kneeling positioning and searched the ground for the little sparrow which Estel had dropped when he grabbed him. He spotted it a couple of feet away still trying to fly away. He bent down and gently caught it in his hands and whispered a couple or reassuring words to her. It stilled in his hands and a black eye peered up at him. With the bird in his hands he moved towards Estel but his way was quickly blocked by Elladan who glared heatedly at him. Elrohir tighten his hold on Estel and took a step backward.

"You will stay away from my brother."

"Aye, and I promise you I will my Lord. But please let me just talk to him first. Estel is not at fault and I wrongly took my anger out on him, for which I'm truly sorry for. I would just like to talk to him if you'll let me."

Once again Legolas stepped in to meddle and motioned to Elladan to step aside, he knew Calanon had acted rashly but now when he was back to his senses he would never hurt Estel. Not that he would ever get the chance now when the twins were watching over their little brother like two vicious guard dogs. With a grim face Elladan stepped aside but held himself close.

Estel fearfully saw the dark elf approach them; he whimpered and pushed his head deeper into the folds of Elrohir's robe he clung to.

"It's alright Estel, I'm here." Elrohir said soothingly. Comforted by his brother's presence Estel dared to peek up at the approaching elf. He gasped when he saw that he was holding the little bird in his hands and it calmly let itself be carried. The elf didn't look angry like before but he still felt a little worried.

"Well met pen neth, my name is Calanon. What's yours?"

The elf was looking at him kindly now, which confused him even more but remembering his manners he answered.

"Estel." He whispered and looked suspiciously at the Mirkwood elf but finally his curiosity got the better of him so he added. "How did you get the birdie to be so still?"

"I told her that I was going to help her."

"You can speak with animals?" Estel interest rose immediately.

Calanon smiled at seeing the boy's eyes widen. "A bit, most wood elves have a close contact with animals."

"I tried to tell her that I only wanted to help her but it didn't work. I didn't mean to hurt her."

"I know Estel, I misunderstood the situation and acted rashly. I never should have hurt you, it was wrong of me, I'm very sorry."

"You're hurt too." Estel frowned and reached forward to lightly touch the bruised cheek and bleeding nose. "Does it hurt a lot?"

"That's my own fault, don't worry about it."

"So you're not angry at me anymore?" Estel said hopefully.

"No, not at all. I'm just angry at myself for hurting you." Calanon held the bird up to the boy. "Here, take her to your Ada and make her well."

Estel accepted the bird with a big smile. "Would you like to come too?" He asked, curious about this elf who could talk with animals. When he had his brother with him he wasn't so afraid of him any longer. Now he actually seemed to be rather nice, he didn't even look angry anymore.

"Ada could heal you too."

"Hannon lle Estel, but I don't think that is such a good idea."

"What has happened here?" The stern voice made everyone turn around and Estel cried out happily.

"Ada!"

"Ion nîn, what has happened to your cheek?" Elrond's questioned with a frown, concerned by the red mark he saw in his sons face.

"Calanon hit me, he thought I was hurting the birdie, but I wasn't. I tried to tell her but I don't think she understood me. But Calanon can talk to animals so he talked to her so you can heal the bird now Ada." Estel took a deep breath. "Calanon is also hurt, can you help him too?" He added to his not so understandable harangue.

Half of the things Estel had said didn't make any sense to Elrond but at least he managed to catch the part about Calanon hitting him. Since Estel gestured towards an unknown dark-haired elf with a bruised face, he supposed that would be Calanon. He frowned angrily at the Mirkwood warrior and took a step forward.

"Are you Calanon?"

"Yes, my lord."

"And is it true that you are the one who hurt my son."

"Yes, my lord. I'm very sorry and ashamed of my actions." Calanon hung his head in shame.

The whole situation didn't make much sense to Elrond but seeing his son hurt fed his anger but he quickly decided that it would be best to stifle it for the time being. After one last angry look at the Mirkwood warrior he motioned for Elrohir to hand Estel over to him who happily petted the sparrow in his hands.

"I will deal with this later. I want to take my son to the healing wing first." He declared when he had Estel securely seated in his embrace. Elladan and Elrohir were at his side directly, shortly followed by Legolas. He glanced back at Calanon who still stood glued to the spot.

"You should come too, and have your face looked over." He said with a pointed look to the warrior's swelling cheek and bloody nose.

Calanon looked a bit surprised at first but seemed to consider it wise to do what he was told so he followed. When he glanced over his shoulder, Elrond noticed that the warrior made sure to stay a couple of steps behind the rest of the company. Observing his elder son's moods he concluded that it probably was a wise decision of him.

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On the way back Elrond finally got the situation explained for him and they were all now gathered in the healing wing. At the moment he was doing his best to lay a cold compress on the squirming Estel's cheek, who constantly turned his head away.

"Estel, be still!"

"But Ada, it's fine. Help the birdie instead, it only hurts more when you do that." Estel whined. He was starting to get very irritated at the cold compress that consistently kept returning to his face every time he tried to push it away. He was doing his best to try and watch the injured bird that had been placed in a basket on a nearby table. Not far away Calanon got his face examined by one of the other healers. Estel giggled when he saw that he seemed to be just as annoyed at the attention as he was.

Calanon looked up at the sound of Estel's giggling and saw that he was looking straight at him. After a moment of hesitation he smiled a small smile and rolled his eyes.

Elrond noticed the exchange with some confusion, but Estel didn't seem frightened by it, he only giggled even louder. Obliviously his son had already forgiven the Mirkwood warrior. He made Estel face him again and made a new attempt at placing the compress at his cheek.

"I know it hurts but it's only for a minute, it will feel better soon. If you sit still I will help the bird." He looked over at his sons and Legolas. "Elrohir, could you help him hold it in place while I look over the bird."

"Of course, Adar."

Estel seemed pleased with the deal so he finally settled down and let Elrohir hold the compress at his face. Elrond approached the basket and with skilled hands gently looked over the bird that quietly let him examine her wing.

"Her wing seems to be broken," he said after a while.

"Will she be alright?" Estel asked worriedly and stretched his neck to see better.

"With a little help I believe so."

Estel smiled widely at the reply and Elrond was glad to be able to give the good news. Once again he looked between his son and Calanon wondering how to best take care of this rather confusing incident. Estel almost acted like nothing had happened while the Mirkwood elf sat in his corner with an apprehensive and guilty expression on his face. With a small shake on his head he turned to the small company.

"Now we will all go to the feast and this matter will be dealt with in the morning." Elrond turned to Calanon. "Join your comrades for the night but I want to see you in my office first thing in the morning."

"Of course, my Lord." Calanon said with bowed head.

Elladan started to angrily protest but Elrond hushed him.

"It will be as a say," he said sternly. "This will be taken care of in the morning."

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The next morning Elrond summoned Calanon and Legolas to his room. His sons had wanted to be there too for the judgement but Elrond had rejected their request. This was a matter that would be better dealt with without their heated emotions. It had been enough to see them glare at Calanon through the whole feast last night. Understandably enough the Mirkwood warrior had retired early, probably not very comfortable to be there in the first place. Elrond suspected that he only attended because his prince had requested it.

He could see it was a very nervous Calanon who stood in front of him now, surely wondering what his punishment would be. But after talking with Legolas yesterday he had decided to leave that part to the prince who knew this elf much better than him, besides he trusted the blond elf's judgement in this matter.

"You should be happy to hear that prince Legolas has pleaded in your favour. I trust his judgement in this and I have decided to comply with his decision for you."

Calanon looked surprised and than questioningly at his prince, nervously wondering what his punishment would be. The dreaded thought of being banished lay like a heavy stone over his heart. It would at least mean that he could join his sister in the undying lands but he knew the shame would be a great burden to bear. And although he missed his sister dearly he didn't feel in his heart that it was his time to sail to the west yet.

Legolas was looking at him sternly. "I believe the biggest lesson you have already learned on your own and no punishment can help you with that. But I still believe some consequences should come from your actions, do you agree with this?"

"I do my prince." He kneeled respectfully to receive his verdict.

"I have never seen this kind of behaviour from your before and I truly don't think I will again. You have served your kingdom well before and I believe that you're sincere in your regret. But I do think you let your anger and sorrow blind you. To make sure that this will not repeat itself again I decided to place you in the next warrior escort to Lake Town and I truly hope you'll come back with a new understanding for other races." With a lopsided smile he added. "And of course you will be mucking out the stables for the next three months."

Calanon looked up at his prince disbelievingly with slightly agape mouth. "Is that all, my prince?"

"Would you like a more severe punishment, Calanon?"

"No, but my actions-"

"Were terrible yes, but since Estel has already decided to forgive you so will I." His face hardened when he continued and Calanon swallowed hard when he was penetrated by blue cold eyes. "But I hope you do realise that if anything like this happens again I will not be as forgiving."

"Of course, I promise to not disappoint you again my prince."

Legolas face softened and an approving smile graced his lips. "Good, now rise. We will speak no more of this."

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Two months later when it was time for Legolas and the other Mirkwood elves to journey home many things had improved. The little sparrow was on the mend and would be ready to be released any day now. Estel had happily made some new friends among the Mirkwood elves and lost most of his shyness around the newcomers. Especially around Legolas who had been required to answer all sorts of questions to an inquisitive little boy non stop for the last couple of months. Luckily he got a helping hand from Calanon who patiently explained the many mysteries of life to the young boy.

Legolas guessed that some part of his great patience with the boy could have been a result of the guilt Calanon still felt for his actions. But lately he didn't think that was the real reason for it. Unbelievingly enough Calanon actually had started to enjoy spending time with Estel. This wasn't a problem for the boy who quickly forgot about the incident in the garden and was happy to have someone to teach him about the strange ways of the Mirkwood elves.

Legolas was pleased about the situation too, he wasn't afraid for Estel's safety in the Mirkwood warrior's company. He was just glad to see Calanon too busy to muse about his past and this should help to reduce at least some of his hate for mankind. Luckily Lord Elrond had also decided to trust Calanon's sincerity when he swore to never hurt Estel again. Legolas knew that the Lord could be quite protective of his foster son and he could have easily decided to forbid the Mirkwood warrior to ever see Estel again. But the half-elf also had a remarkable way of seeing people's true nature. Legolas knew that Calanon was not a bad person by heart and Elrond saw the same thing. Besides Legolas thought that he would have had a hard time keeping Estel away from Calanon, who had grown very attached to the elf.

So the only ones that were a bit apprehensive about Estel's new friend were his overprotective brothers. Legolas couldn't help to smile at the thought; they really were like two aggressive guard dogs. Well, at least Elladan fit that description fairly well, Elrohir was a bit calmer of nature. Which was lucky because he didn't think he could handle two Elladan, he had enough trouble with one. But even the guard dogs had settled down some, when Elrohir saw the gentle way Calanon was treating Estel he had been slowly won over and lately even Elladan didn't seem quite so tense in Calanon's presence. Though the twins were still not entirely comfortable with leaving him alone with their brother. But at least it was a big step since they hadn't let Calanon come anywhere near Estel at first.

It was early morning and the sun was still low in the sky when Legolas now stood out on the courtyard to say his last goodbyes before it was time to head back to Mirkwood. He smiled when Elrond came forward and gathered him in a big hug. He stepped back but still with his hands resting on Legolas shoulders.

"Namarië, I hope your journey will be safe. It was a pleasure having you here, I hope you will return to us soon Legolas."

"I will try, hopefully I will not stay away for too long this time. Thank you for your hospitality." He added in a softer voice. "And thank you for forgiving Calanon and letting him spend time with Estel. I would have understood if you had chosen to have him locked up instead. I hate that it had to happen this way but I'm happy to see him acting more as himself again. I have truly missed him these last couple of years."

"A different start to things would definitely have been preferable but Estel doesn't seem to suffer from it and to lock him up would have done no good. I know that Calanon is not a bad person and that he just needs some time to heal. I'm glad to see him better and I know that Estel is happy to have found a new friend even if it didn't have the best of starts." When seeing the twins approach he added. "They will come around soon; they're just worried about their little brother."

"It will feel empty without you Legolas. You will come to visit us again soon, won't you?" Elrohir said as he hugged the prince.

"I will try." He looked around a bit puzzled. "Where is Estel?" Legolas wondered, surprised to not see him clinging to one of his brothers. He had said his goodbyes earlier to the boy and seen him run off to join the twins.

"He's over there, saying goodbye to Calanon." Elrohir tilted his head in the direction.

Legolas looked over at the still silent Elladan. He was standing with crossed arms and tense jaw as he closely watched the interactions between the warrior and his little brother. A guard dog indeed, Legolas thought amused.

"Will I see you again soon?" Estel asked sadly to the kneeling warrior before him.

"I don't know Estel, it might take awhile but I promise to return."

Estel frowned at the reply. "Maybe I could come visit you in Mirkwood." He suggested hopefully.

"I would have liked that but it's a dangerous road and I think your father would like for you to be a bit older before you make that trip."

Estel sighed and he shuffled his feet in the dirt of the courtyard. He was never very good at saying goodbye. It seemed so final for him even if he knew he would see the person again. He had always hated to wave off his brothers when they went hunting or guarded the boarders. And of course he was always too young to do come with them. A finger under his chin made him lift his head and he shifted his gaze from the ground to Calanon's hazel eyes.

"Don't worry Estel, the time will go quickly and before you know it we will see each other again." The elf ruffled the boy's hair. "By my next visit you're going to be a big boy." He smiled and Estel couldn't help to smile himself at the thought. Calanon held out his arms and he jumped into them for a long hug.

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About an hour later the Mirkwood party had almost travelled out of the peaceful valley and Calanon turned on the horse back to gaze out over the beautiful view, a small smile grazed his lips.

"Calanon, are you coming?" The well-known voice of his prince brought him out of his musing.

"I'm coming." With one last look at the valley he turned back to his company and urged his horse forward to join the others.

"Hopefully we will return soon, would you like that?" Legolas said when he caught up with them.

"I'm glad to return to our home, but yes it would be nice to come back here." He smiled at the thought, something Legolas didn't miss. He placed a hand on the dark-haired warrior's shoulder with a warm smile of his own.

"Welcome back mellon nîn, I have missed you these last couple of years."

A grateful grin spread across Calanon's face, he was glad to finally be able to muster the strength for a true one. Maybe it was a bit ironic that a human boy was just what he needed. But now he truly felt that the healing process had started and he was one step closer to healing his old hurts.

The End

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_If you__ managed to get this far then please review and make me happy a writer. :)_

**Translations:**

Ada: Father (daddy)

Adar: Father

Edain: Men

Hannon lle: Thank you

Imladris: Rivendell

Ion nîn: My son

Mellon nîn: My friend

Namairë: Farewell

Pen neth: Young one

Tithen pen: Little one


End file.
